Inside the Institute

Tablet PCs

If you're thinking of buying a new computer for yourself or a teen heading
back to college, consider the emerging market of tablet PCs. Featured in the August issue of Good Housekeeping, tablets, unlike other
laptops have touch screens and most allow the use of a stylus to take notes that
can then be converted into text using software.
GHRI put 7 new tablets to the test to find which were easiest to carry, navigate,
and those that performed the best.

Our consumer panel tested each tablet by using Microsoft One Note software
to take notes, sketch diagrams and then convert their writing into text. They played touch-oriented games, used word
processing applications, and browsed the web.
After experiencing touch and stylus interfaces testers scored 10
characteristics, from responsiveness to their fingertips, to ease of stowing
away.

In the lab, we looked to see how quickly tablets could load programs,
transfer files, and boot up. We also evaluated
the quality of their graphics under strenuous scenarios like playing action games
or HD video. We checked to see how long
the battery lasts under normal circumstances, how warm the underside gets
during operation, and how quiet the fan is.

Tablets can not only double as your primary computer, they can be fun
and practical to use in the classroom.
Because the screens on some rotate and fold down (sometimes called
"convertible" tablets) they can be comfortable to use while perusing the web on the couch or lying in bed too!

To read the results of our tests online, visit here. Interested in our take on the iPad? Check out the August issue
of Good Housekeeping.

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